Phrynocephalus guttatus

Phrynocephalus guttatus
Central Asian toadhead agama in Kalmykia desert
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Iguania
Family:	Agamidae
Genus:	Phrynocephalus
Species:	P. guttatus
Binomial name
Phrynocephalus guttatus (Gmelin, 1789)
Synonyms [2]
Lacerta guttata Gmelin, 1789 Agama guttata — Daudin, 1802 Phrynocephalus guttatus — Kaup, 1827

Phrynocephalus guttatus, also known commonly as the spotted toadhead agama, the Saissan toad-headed agama, the Central Asian toadhead agama, and Salensky's toadhead agama, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is native to southeastern Europe and western Asia. There are five recognized subspecies.

Geographic range

Phrynocephalus guttatus is found in Kazakhstan, southern Russia, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. ^[1]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitat of Phrynocephalus guttatus is desert, at altitudes from 16 m (52 ft) below sea level to 1,000 m (3,300 ft). ^[1]

Reproduction

Phrynocephalus guttatus is oviparous. ^[2]

Subspecies

Five subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies. ^[2]

• Phrynocephalus guttatus alpherakii Bedriaga, 1906
• Phrynocephalus guttatus guttatus(Gmelin, 1789)
• Phrynocephalus guttatus melanurus Eichwald, 1831 – Saissan toad-headed agama
• Phrynocephalus guttatus moltschanowi Nikolsky, 1913
• Phrynocephalus guttatus salsatus Gorelov, Dunayev & Kotenko, 1995

Nota bene : A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Phrynocephalus .

Etymology

The subspecific name, moltschanowi, is in honor of Russian ornithologist L.A. Molchanov who collected natural history specimens in the Crimea from 1903 to 1933. ^{[3] : 182}

References

1. Tuniyev, B.; Ananjeva, N.B.; Aghasyan, A.; Orlov, N.L.; Anderson, S.; Dujsebayeva, T.; Chirikova, M.; Shestapol, A.; Nazarov, R.; Melnikov, D. (2017). "Phrynocephalus guttatus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017 e.T157278A747934. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-2.RLTS.T157278A747934.en . Retrieved 20 November 2021.
2. Phrynocephalus guttatus at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database . Accessed 2018-10-31.
3. Beolens, B.; Watkins, M.; Grayson, M. (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. xiii + 296. ISBN   978-1-4214-0135-5.

Further reading

• Eichwald, "Eduardus" (1831). Zoologia specialis, quam expositis animalibus tum vivis, tum fossilibus potissimum rossiae in universum, et poloniae in specie, in usum lectionum publicarum in Universitate Caesarea Vilnensi [Volume III]. Vilnius: J. Zawadzki. 404 pp. (Phrynocephalus melanurus, new species, p. 186). (in Latin).
• Gmelin JF (1789). Caroli a Linné Systema Naturæ. Editio Decima Tertia [13th edition]. Tomus I. Pars III. Classis III. Amphibia. Leipzig: G.E. Beer. pp. 1033–1125. (Lacerta guttata, new species, p. 1078). (in Latin).
• Sindaco R, Jeremčenko VK (2008). The Reptiles of the Western Palearctic. 1. Annotated Checklist and Distributional Atlas of the Turtles, Crocodiles, Amphisbaenians and Lizards of Europe, North Africa, Middle East and Central Asia. (Monographs of the Societas Herpetologica Italica). Latina, Italy: Edizioni Belvedere. 580 pp. ISBN   978-88-89504-14-7.